The Icing on the Cookie
by WindowChild
Summary: Sally and Annabeth bond over cookie baking. Christmas fic. Percabeth fluff.


A/N: Hi you guys! Guess what – it's winter vacation! As many of you may have noticed, I've actually been extremely diligent about updating lately. … Not PJO stories, I know, but they're coming up : ).

Anyway, here we go! A Christmas fic! Alas, I wanted to do a Hanukkah fic… but 'Blofis' isn't really a Jewish name. So here we go! I don't know why, but I'm exceptionally enthusiastic today. This is the single fluffiest thing I think I'll ever write.

"Percy?" Annabeth peeked her head around the Jackson's front door, blinking into the open room. When they spoke last night, he'd sworn he'd be home. "Percy?"

"He's not here, honey." Sally emerged from the kitchen, a striped apron tied around her waist. Her belly reflected a swollen, pregnant size, and Annabeth remembered that she only had a month before her due date. "He's out buying Christmas trees with Paul."

"Oh…" Annabeth said. "Oh, okay." He hadn't mentioned that to her. "You mean… a real Christmas tree?" They had a fake one at her dad's house, but her brothers usually disemboweled it by Christmas morning. She'd never forget the time they decapitated her little statue of Athena (they hadn't known who it was, but still).

"I think so. Do you want to help me bake?" She gave a warm smile, beckoning Annabeth into the kitchen.

Santas, and reindeers lay everywhere, from the windowsills to the coffee table. A chain of candy canes laced the bookcase, and Annabeth wondered if they even needed a Christmas tree at all; they were already immersed in the holiday spirit. Even though some of the Santas wore blue suits, rather than red ones, Annabeth felt pleased to see a home embracing the enthusiasm of Christmas. She'd never had much herself, but she always hoped it would come along at the right time.

The scents of hazelnut and cinnamon wafted through the tiled kitchen, clinging to the themed decor. Annabeth's smile widened as she inhaled, and she stumbled for the proper compliment. "It smells great," she said.

"Thanks." Sally chuckled, not looking up from her whisk and mixing bowl. "I've been baking for days now."

"I can tell," Annabeth remarked, raising her eyebrows at the site of stacked gingerbread men. This was the first time she'd been alone with Sally, and the first they'd really talked since she and Percy started dating. She began to notice all of the features Sally shared with her son, like her sloped nose and her broad shoulders.

"Do you want to help me, honey?" Sally asked, extending the bowl to Annabeth. It was clear she meant to be inviting, not pawning off her work, but Annabeth only noticed then sheen of moisture on her forehead.

"Sure," she said, taking the mixture. "Sally, are you sure you should be doing this?" She felt embarrassed even asking, but she thought it better to be safe than sorry.

"Of course," Sally answered, frowning. "Why shouldn't I?"

"Oh – " Again, Annabeth felt unusually speechless. She had an inexplicable desire to impress this woman, but then… "Your pregnant?" she said at last, though it came out as a question.

Sally laughed, throwing her head back and flashing her coffee-stained teeth. "You're just as bad as the boys, aren't you?" She moved to put an arm around the younger girl, causing Annabeth to flinch in surprise. "They won't let me do anything anymore. Come on, honey. Let me show you how to whisk."

Annabeth accepted a hair tie from Sally, removing her blonde locks from harms way. She'd let it grow out since the summer, and Juniper had briefed her on the dangers of hair-maintenance. She guessed that batter splatter would count as a first-rate maintenance mistake (Juniper's terminology, not hers).

She felt stupid as she stepped forward, wondering where this sudden shyness had come from. It compared to the way she acted with her stepmom, sometimes, though this put her off all the further. She fought it desperately, struggling to act like herself.

"See?" Sally said, smiling. "I knew you'd be good at it."

Annabeth laughed softly, continuing the steady motions of whisking. "Really?"

"Yeah." Sally patted her back. "You're great with technical things, aren't you? Percy says you want to be an architect."

Annabeth flushed; how much did they talk about her? "I do."

"Well, you'll be great at that," Sally replied. She used a napkin from the table to wipe her face, but it took the sweat and left the encouraging smile.

"Thanks… Um, is this done?" She held up the eggs for approval.

"Looks good," Sally replied. "We –" She gave a little start, clutching her stomach.

"What? What?" Annabeth's pulse sped, and she whirled to face Sally.

"Nothing," she took a deep breath, "Just – " another gasp, "Pregnancy pains." Noticing Annabeth's shocked expression, Sally did her best to hide the jolts of pain. "I'm fine, really," she said, nodding with as much energy as she could. Her voice sounded tight, though, and Annabeth didn't buy it.

"Should I call the hospital?" she asked, racing to the phone. "Are you going into labor?" Her stepmom had only ever been pregnant when they weren't speaking, so she'd never been around a pregnant woman much before. With sickening force, her psyche imploded at the image of Sally giving birth on the kitchen floor.

"No, honey," Sally wobbled over to take the phone from her, actually laughing at Annabeth's panic. "This is normal – " She inhaled, gritting her teeth. "I promise."

"Are you sure?" Though her heart still thudded dramatically, Annabeth managed to steel her brain back to the realm of rational thought.

"Yes," Sally said, laughter still in her eyes . "Can you just get me to the couch?"

'Sure," Annabeth replied, glad to do _something _of use. She put her arm around Sally's back, gently maneuvering her all the way to the living room.

"Ah," Sally sighed, enjoying the sensation of pillows behind her head. "Thank you."

"You should get some rest," Annabeth said, worry rafting along her bloodstream.

Sally nodded. "Maybe I did work too hard, for once." Her smile faded, and she looked worried. "I hate not making the sugar cookies, though. They're one of Percy's favorites."

At the sound of this, Annabeth's stomach jigged and hit her ribcage. "I can try to finish them, if you want. I can follow the recipe."

The corners of Sally's eyes crinkled, and she fixed a loving glance on Annabeth. "It's so nice to have a willing female around the house." She chuckled, beckoning Annabeth closer. "But you should remind me to tell you about the time Percy tried to make me breakfast in bed."

Annabeth laughed, "He never told me about that!"

"Well, he wouldn't have. It was a bit of a debacle." The women smiled at one another. "Well, if you'd like to help, go ahead. Thank you. Just come and get me when you do the icing, alright?"

"Okay." Annabeth returned to the kitchen on her own, feeling suddenly incompetent. She debated what Percy would think if she burned his apartment down. "Okay," she repeated, sighing. She read the recipe, mouthing every step to process it.

It did not sound too difficult. She had a knack for the mathematics, anyway, and she made a sort of dance out of adding ingredients. She even preheated the oven with ease, and saw no signs of coming fire. By the time the cookies went into bake, she felt calm.

As her fingers fiddled with the tomato-shaped timer, she considered phoning Percy. Sally seemed okay though, or quiet at least, and Annabeth didn't want to worry him. Besides, a little part of her had the urge to surprise him. What would he think, coming home to find his girlfriend had baked him his favorite cookies? Her heart buzzed cheerfully, hoping he'd be happy.

According to the recipe, icing came right after the cookies returned from the oven. Remembering Sally's instructions, Annabeth went to find her.

It was too hard though. She lay asleep on the couch, a peaceful smile on her lips. Annabeth couldn't bear to wake her. And anyway, she'd found a skill for baking thing, hadn't she? She'd done alright so far. The buzz grew louder, and she realized she could surprise _two _people. What would Sally think, waking up to find the cookies completely finished? Smiling secretly to herself, Annabeth placed a blanket over Sally, and began to follow the icing recipe.

It sounded even simpler than the cookie recipe, and she wondered why Sally thought she needed help with it. Once she'd thrown in the red food coloring – after all, red was the Christmas color – Annabeth beamed at her handiwork. Very rarely did she feel pride at her accomplishments, as owning the role of perfectionist often spawned disappointment, but, just this once, she thought she'd done a nice job.

Carefully applying the red coat to the cookies, Annabeth realized that it was snowing. The sky flung beautiful, lacey flakes at the sidewalk, and she wondered if Zeus and Poseidon realized how happy they were making the children of New York.

"What – what are… oh, Annabeth, no!" Sally had woken up, apparently, and come into the kitchen. However, she looked horrified. "You did the icing!"

Annabeth frowned, misunderstanding Sally's anger. "Yeah, it was easy, don't worry."

"No… I –" Sally shook her head. "You made them red."

"Yeah, they're Christmas cookies, right?" Annabeth couldn't help it, she felt a little bit defensive. After all, she'd finished the cookies, hadn't she?

"Yes, but… We have a tradition, Annabeth. I always make Percy something blue."

"Something blue?" Annabeth asked, thinking of the wedding rhyme.

"Yeah, hasn't he told you? I always made blue pancakes, blue cookies… It was a special joke between us."

Between them. It shouldn't have bothered her, it really shouldn't have, but Annabeth felt a little uncomfortable. Percy knew her better than anyone in the world; however, Sally knew him better than she did. Why was that?

"I just thought…" her voice broke, and she shook her head. "It's the first Christmas since the battle, and the last before he gets a sister, and I wanted this to be special for him."

Meanwhile, Annabeth gaped. "It's a girl? I thought you didn't know the sex!"

"Percy and Paul don't." She frowned. "Please don't tell them."

"I won't, I won't," Annabeth said quickly. She felt a little stunned, having this piece of information before the baby's brother.

"I'm going to go get dressed," Sally said, sniffing. She still looked angry, however, and left the room without a backwards glance.

Annabeth sank into a kitchen chair. She understood Sally's motives, she did, but she still didn't think it was fair. She'd made a mistake; she hadn't known any better. Sighing, she realized it was time to call Percy.

She dialed his number – his new cell number, which monsters had blessedly avoided so far – and shut her eyes.

"Hello?"

"Percy?" she said, relieved. "Percy, where are you?"

"I'm…" he paused, "I'm getting a tree Annabeth, didn't my mom tell you?"

"Yeah, but –"

"I'll be there soon, okay?" She recoiled, noticing the slight malice in his voice. "I didn't know you'd get there so early."

"It's almost six o'clock," she retorted.

"I know, but Paul took us out of the city. I'll be back soon, okay?"

"But Percy –"

"Bye." The line went dead, and Annabeth pounded the 'off' button until her phone went to sleep. Now she really felt out of place. Sally blamed her for ruining the cookies, Percy was gods know where… A part of her wanted to call her own home and see what her dad was doing. He was nowhere near Sally in terms of holiday planning, but at least he was _hers._

She grabbed her jacket from the tabletop, deciding to venture out to Barnes and Noble. Percy could call her when he got back.

"Wait, Annabeth. Please, don't go." She froze in front of the doorway, listening to Sally approach her from behind. "Please. I'm sorry."

Annabeth turned slowly, finding Sally right behind her. "I'm sorry about the cookies," she said.

Sally gave a watery smile, exhaling at a comical volume. "Don't worry about it. I've just gotten so sensitive, ever since I got pregnant. Sometimes I think Paul's right to try and keep me away from the public."

"It's okay," Annabeth replied, offering a small smile back. In truth, she only felt relieved. "I – I should have listened." She cringed inwardly, despising how it felt to apologize. "I am sorry about that part."

"It's okay," Sally said. "I know you were just trying to help. Oh, honey, it was so nice to have you here." Before Annabeth could react, Sally hugged her tightly.

"Really?" Annabeth asked. That was all she'd wanted, wasn't it? To belong in the Jackson house?

"Of course. I love to have company when I bake. And anyway, I don't know what I would have done if you weren't here. Those pregnancy pains can be scary if I'm alone."

"I thought you said they were no big deal," Annabeth replied, frowning in mock scorn.

Sally skillfully changed the subject. "Why don't we sit down?" she asked. "I can tell you about Percy trying to make me breakfast in bed."

"Okay. Oh, hey, do you know where he is? I called, and he said Paul had taken them out of state."

"Paul called me, don't worry. They'll be back soon."

Annabeth felt her chest tighten. So Paul had called. Percy hadn't. Percy had practically hung up on her when she tried to talk to him.

"Anyway, it all started with a blender."

"What did?" Annabeth asked, distracted.

"The time he made me breakfast in bed."

Annabeth laughed, deciding to forget about his flaws for the moment. "Oh, I can't wait to hear this."

After the story of the breakfast fiasco – which somehow managed to include spinach, chocolate chips and a hockey puck – Sally moved on to other embarrassing stories, including Percy's first haircut.

"I swear," she said, popping another cookie in her mouth. "I have never seen him so upset. And look," she gave a girlish laugh, reaching for a fat, black book. "This is how he looked." She handed over a Polaroid, complete with a grumbling, shorthaired Percy. "Keep it," she said, wisely. "Use it to threaten him."

Annabeth laughed, taking another cookie – the penultimate one – herself. "Thanks. Wow, how did we eat so many cookies?"

"Mmm, they were good,' Sally said. "You did a great job."

"Thanks," Annabeth repeated, little dimples appearing on the corners of her mouth.

There were loud sounds of boots then, and the door swung open. The men walked in, a plump evergreen tree over Paul's shoulder. "Hi honey," he said, walking to kiss Sally on the lips. "How are you feeling?"

"Wonderful," she replied. "Annabeth and I have really been getting to know each other." She winked at Annabeth, who quickly remembered to stow the picture in her pocket.

"Hey," Percy said, shuffling his feet a bit. "Merry Christmas Annabeth." With his hair all snow covered, his nose pink from the cold, Annabeth almost decided to forgive him. Almost.

She stalked past him into the kitchen.

"She okay?" Annabeth heard Paul ask.

"Leave it," Sally replied. "They have some things to work out."

Percy swiftly followed her in. "Annabeth?" he asked. "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing," she replied sardonically. "I've just ruined your special cookies, made your mom hate me. Nothing out of the ordinary."

"I – " Annabeth stuffed the last cookie in his mouth, cutting him off. She grinned.

"Sorry," she added. "I had to do that."

"So you aren't mad?" he asked, showering her with spit and cookie crumbs. "Hey, these are good."

"Not really," she sighed. "But Percy… I don't know. Being here, talking to your mom, I feel like I don't know you at all."

"What are you talking about?" he said, licking a drop of icing from his lip. "Of course you know me."

"Not as well as everyone else. You never tell me stories about your childhood."

"Stories?" Percy hid his face in his hands. "Oh gods, what did my mom say?"

Annabeth gave a smile Hades would be proud of, lightly touching her pocket. "Mm, maybe I'll tell you later," she said.

"Anyway, Annabeth, you do know me," Percy said. "And if I don't talk to you about my childhood… well, that's because it's kind of boring."

"Yeah, but it's still you," she replied. "I want to know who you are, Percy."

"You do," Percy said. He moved next to her, putting an arm around her waist. Annabeth felt her face heat up, caught off guard by their sudden closeness. They'd kissed, sure, but it was rare for them to "cuddle", or anything like that. "Annabeth, you know me better than anyone. You were the one I thought of in the River Styx, remember?"

"Yeah…" her voice trailed off. "But what about the rest of you? I missed the whole first eleven years of your life."

Percy laughed. "Yeah, well, you were busy running away from monsters with Thalia and Luke. And Annabeth, relax… My mom may have seen those eleven years, but you're going to see the rest of them." They both shut up, realizing what this meant. "I mean, uh, you know, at camp reunions, and uh… What were you saying about ruining my cookies?"

"Oh, it was nothing," Annabeth sighed. "I made the icing red instead of blue, and your mom got mad at me. But then we made up, and ate all of the cookies anyway, so it doesn't matter." She shrugged.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Finally someone gets the Christmas colors right," he said, shaking his head. "My mom always messes it up." He paused, smiling. "Hey, can I kiss you?"

Annabeth laughed, relieved and feeling as airy as the snow. "Sure."

His lips were as warm as ever, his hands slipping through her hair as their tongues met. He undid the hair tie, letting her blonde locks fall and brush his forehead. Even with their mouths preoccupied, they both managed to smile.

They pulled apart, still in the awkward what-do-we-do-after-we-make-out phase. "So where were you?" Annabeth asked, combing through her hair. "You guys took forever."

Percy looked away, shyly grinning at her. "Well, I was going to wait until Christmas morning, but if you want to see it now…" He pulled a slovenly wrapped book from behind him, and placed it on the table.

"We found it at a used book sale, and then some old lady bought it before we had a chance. The reason we were late, is because we had to follow her up to her home in Albany to buy it from her."

Annabeth gaped. It was a mint condition Frank Lloyd Wright book, complete with a signed photo in the front. "Percy, he's my favorite architect!" She turned, eyes swirling in the way they did when she got excited. "This must have cost you a fortune!"

"Paul a fortune," Percy corrected. "But I'm going to pay him back," he added, "as soon as I get a job."

"Oh my gods…" She breathed an exclamatory curse in ancient Greek, and leaned forward to peck his lips. "I can't believe you drove all the way upstate, just to get me this. I – I haven't even decided what to get you yet."

"You're here, aren't you? You're spending Christmas with my family. That's enough for me."

"Oh Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said, looking frantically in his direction. "I can't believe it. I…" She held up the book behind his head, leafing through the pages

"Hey, it's only a book," he replied, suddenly embarrassed by her excitement.

"No, it isn't. You got me a_ first_ addition Frank Lloyd Wright. Complete with his _signature_. That is so much more than a book."

When she glanced at him, still feeling flustered, his cheeks were pink. "Well, I knew you'd like it. Even if you are twice as good an architect as him."

"Thank you," she breathed, squeezing his hand.

"Hey, do you have any more of the cookies?" he asked, his attention span already spent.

She laughed. "No, sorry, your mom and I ate most of them. I gave you the last one. Sorry," she repeated, when he looked crestfallen.

"Eh, it's okay," he said, after a moment.

"It's worth it, to me, having you here and stuff…" He said it without eloquence or irony, and Annabeth loved him for it.

"I'm happy to be here too," she said, meeting his eyes. "Merry Christmas, Percy."

"Merry Christmas."

A/N: That's all! I know, it's a bit cliché and stuff, but I really wanted to do a fic about Annabeth fitting in at the Jackson household. I think it's a detail people overlook too often, personally, because they really are more free-spirited than she is.

Anyway. You know what would be really special? If you reviewed! : ) That's right! I am not above begging, folks. And if you review, I promise you I'll try to update faster (I am also not above bribing).

Oh, and keep your eyes out for two very special collaborative fics from ShadowPalace and I. One will be on her account and one on mine, so keep your eyes pealed. Happy Holidays!

Love,

Abbie


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